Live in the moment. Live in gratitude. Look for the gift. Accept what is.

Thursday, March 30, 2006

The Freaks Are Out!

Hip hop beats pour out the windows of a decrepid minivan, competing angrily with the steady pulse of 4/4 house songs streaming from the Honda Civic behind it. A fight breaks out between 3 homeless people. They tussle, a shirt pulled over the head, hockey style. Punches thrown. A rock sails through the air and hits the roof of a cab THUNK as he peals away, perhaps sensing the anxious energy in the air. Everyone stops to stare for a moment, distracted, then continues mindlessly on their way, looking into store windows, fresh displays of spring. Still, the chaos is palpable, the energy electric.

What is it about the first taste of spring that brings out the freak in people? Is it that we're so thirsty for the light after 4 months of darkness, that we lose our minds? Is it temporary insanity?

It's barely 10 degrees outside, yet people are already shedding their winter clothes like there's no tomorrow. Even though I'm wearing a thick cashmere sweater and a down-filled vest, the healthy wind is still able to cut though my layers and give me a chill. Yet everywhere I look, there are women walking around in short shorts, mini-skirts and sandals. They wait at traffic lights, arms crossed and shivering, their legs unprotected, shaking in the cold. I see a flash of belly fat, pale winter white, soft and vulnerable. I turn my head.

3 comments:

I think it's because people are trying to bring spring faster. Sorta like, if you wear it, it will come, kinda thing, you know? And as for me, I bought this really cool lime green jersey jacket the other day, so I'm hoping winter lasts for at least another month so I can have time to pimp it out...